College of Social and Behavioral Science
110 Barbara Bergmann’s Scholarship on the Economic Risk of Being a Housewife
Jade Ramirez-Barraza and Sarah F. Small
Faculty Mentor: Sarah Small (Economics, University of Utah)
In 1981, pioneering feminist economist Barbara Bergmann published a paper in the American Economic Review (AER) on the economic risks of being a housewife. Until this publication, mainstream economists had applied the term ‘risk’ differently from Bergmann, with minimal reference to gender and power. Yet, several feminist heterodox economists, and activists in the Wages for Housework Movement, used arguments similar to Bergmann. While Bergmann’s theories on housewifery aligned well with the feminist heterodox economics literature of this era, she strategically positioned herself closer to mainstream economics by examining housewifery through the lens of labour economics. We show that Bergmann’s 1981 AER publication had an enduring impact on the feminist economics community and a minimal impact on mainstream economic thinking. We conclude by contextualizing how her work fits into Bergmann’s broader intellectual identity: straddled between mainstream and heterodox economics.
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About the authors
name: Jade Ramirez-Barraza
name: Sarah Small
institution: University of Utah